"Why are you here?" Matthew demanded, his fists clenched so tight his knuckles went from brown to almost white.
"You know, if anything we're the ones who should be offended." Malcolm gestured behind him, and Alex realized that a couple of his friends were in the crowd behind him. A few more were lingering by the front door. "Since none of us were invited to this lovely little soiree you guys put together. Which- Isn't that a little hypocritical? All that talk you lot spat about equality, and then you turn around and throw a segregated party. How ignoble of you, Matthew Montoya."
"I know your name too," Matthew seethed. "Don't you think it's a bit backwards that someone who hates the fact that we're here is seeking out our company in his free time? Unless you really came here to just to start a fight, Greene."
"Me? Never. I come in peace and love." Malcolm lunged forward suddenly, throwing his arm around Matthew's neck. He didn't really make an attempt to make the move look like anything other than a headlock. "See? Hugs and kisses and all that."
Matthew's eyes went wide with panic, and his hands flew up to Malcolm's arm, trying to pry it off his neck. It was no use, though. Malcolm Greene was a brawn wyvern. He had probably smashed that stereo with nothing but his foot, and he couldn't easily do the same to Matthew's neck. He wasn't going to let go until he felt like it.
"Let him go!" Eloise said, stepping forward in to the half circle. Her voice shook and her body trembled, but she tried her best to put on a brave face. "He can't breathe!"
"Here's what I don't get," Malcolm continued, ignoring Eloise entirely. "You all know we don't want you here. You've got other prep schools you could worm your way in to, don't you? Since you're all so smart. Laughlin has been taking in your kind for the past five years. That place in America? Highlands or something like that? They practically love you runts over there. Yet you go out of your way to come here. You say you hate us and our way of life, yet you're trying so damn hard to be like us. Don't you see a bit of a contradiction there? Why don't you just admit the truth? You'll be spending the rest of your lives trying to be half the wyvern the least of us is. You think coming here will get you closer, but it won't. Nothing you do will make you more significant than the buzzing little bugs you are."
Even from a distance Alex could see the rage burning in Matthew's eyes. He let out a choking noise that was probably meant to be an insult or retort, but it couldn't make it past the pressure of Malcolm's arm.
Do something , AJ demanded. Why are you just standing here? DO something! Alex instinctively looked around for Jack again, but he almost felt AJ giving him a smack across his head. Not Jack, you idiot, you! You do something!
Alex tried to push closer to the front of the crowd, but most weren't paying enough attention to him to move out of his way. A few did, but they looked at him like he was one of the ones threatening their friend. For all the knew he was. So, they intentionally kept him from getting through. He tried to shout for Malcolm to stop, but his voice got stuck in his throat and he couldn't figure out how to free it.
What happened to be braver, asshole?
Evidently all the bravery in the room belonged to Matthew Montoya and his friends. Baptiste stepped forward, holding his arms out at his sides like a peace gesture.
"We were just trying to give students here a reason to stay away from your traditional party," Baptiste explained carefully. "We knew you would get in trouble if a fight broke out, so-"
"You saying our kind of fun isn't good enough for you?"
"What?" Baptiste looked for a moment like if he was wondering if his English wasn't as good as he thought. "No, that is not-"
"Wait, I know you. You're the French bastard who wants to fuck my fiancée."
Baptiste blinked slowly, clearly having no idea what Malcolm was talking about. He seemed to realize it was better not to figure that out for the moment. "It does not matter who I am, please-"
"Who the fuck are you to tell me what matters?"
"Just let go of him!"
"Watch the way you talk to me runt," Malcolm said, moving toward him. As he did his grip on Matthew loosened a little, and his hand slipped closer to Matthew's mouth. "I let that bitch slide, but you- Fuck!"
Malcolm was cut off by Matthew sinking his teeth into Malcolm's hand, right in between his thumb and index finger. He could have easily let go of Matthew, who would have let go in response, but he just held on tighter. So Matthew bit harder.
"Let go, fucker," Malcolm demanded, not following his own advice until Matthew bit so hard he drew blood. Malcolm finally loosened his hold enough for Matthew to wriggle free and stagger over to his friends. "Oh, you're going to regret that."
Matthew was too busy coughing to answer, so Eloise did instead. "Could you just leave?" She begged. "We're not hurting anyone. You go back to yours; we'll stay here at ours. Why is even that not good enough for you?"
"You're the ones who came in here demanding all sorts of-"
"Demanding? What have we demanded?"
"Oi, didn't he just say to watch your mouths?" One of Malcolm's friends finally spoke up from behind the safety of his ringleader. "You'd better learn to listen on your own before we make you."
"Touch her and you're fucking dead," Matthew said, his raspy voice causing the threat to sound pretty severe.
Malcolm smiled in a way that was laced with cruel intentions. "I'm sorry," he said, "did you just threaten our lives?"
"You were suffocating him!" the goth girl named Olena pointed out from where she stood with her back to the bookshelf.
"I was giving him a friendly hug and then he attacked and threatened me. Isn't that right, Eddie?"
"That's what I saw," the boy who had spoken before answered. "I'd say that lesson ought to be taught now."
"Yeah, me too. Let's start with the runt who started all this yeah?"
In a scarily coordinated flash, Eddie and another one of Malcolm's friends rushed forward and grabbed Matthew by his shoulders. They overpowered any strength he had left and easily dragged him toward the front door, barreling through the crowd of kids. Some of them jumped out of the way on their own, but others were pulled out of the way by more of Malcolm's friends. There were more in the crowd than Alex had realized. The ones by the door opened it up for the ones dragging Matthew to go through. Baptiste tried to hurry after them, but Malcolm barely had to shove him to send him flying into the bookshelf, clutching his chest where Malcolm had made contact. Malcolm looked unconcerned with whether or not he had injured him as he turned to follow his friends.
"S-stop!" Alex finally managed to shout, too late for Malcolm to actually hear. "Malcolm, stop!"
Now that the crowd inside was less compact, Alex managed to move through it a lot more easily. He almost caught up with Malcolm once, but tripped over himself and a couple of panicked students. By the time he got to the exit a fair number of scholarship students had already flooded outside. Alex got out in time to see Malcolm's friends tossing Matthew on to the ground. He fell to his knees with his back to a quickly advancing Malcolm, but immediately shot to his feet and spun around. He raised his fists, looking ready for a fight. His stance looked fairly skillful, and the bit of blood still on his lip and the fire still in his eyes made him look fierce. Malcolm even paused his advance, and Alex had a feeling that despite the vast difference in pure strength the two had, Malcolm was intimidated by the sight of him. Unfortunately, Malcolm recovered quickly.
"Aw, that's adorable," Malcolm mocked. "You want to fight, runt? Let's fight then." Matthew held his stance as Malcolm advanced, looking ready to step up to the challenge. He held steady until Malcolm let out a cruel chuckle that made him falter. "Oh, not like men. Let's fight like we're meant to. Like wyverns."
Matthew dropped his arms as Malcolm's body began to shimmer and warp. His arms morphed in to batlike, scaly wings. His head into a sharped toothed mass crowned with four horns. In an instant the seemingly average sixteen-year-old boy was replaced by a red scaled wyvern, about the size of a London double decker bus. Matthew craned his neck to look up at Malcolm's now pitch-black eyes. Even from a distance Alex could see him shaking.
"Go ahead and change, runt!" one of Malcolm's friends shouted from the line they had formed behind him.
"Yeah, show us what you really look like," another said.
Malcolm himself could no longer throw out biting taunts, so let out a guttural growl that made Alex's bones vibrate. Matthew moved his hands up to cover his ears.
You need to do something , AJ said, his panicked voice echoing in Alex's head.
What if I make it worse? Alex argued back. What will my family say if I-
Who gives a fuck what they think? He's going to kill him! You've got a shot at stopping him if you changed.
I know, but-
Then why are you just standing here like a fucking idiot! Go!
Alex didn't move.
Malcolm took a step forward. He lowered his still growling, toothy maw towards the ground. Towards Matthew. Matthew tried to take a step back, but he was in such a panic that he tripped over the flat ground and fell backwards, barely breaking his fall on the gravel filled dirt. Malcolm continued to advance. Matthew continued to crawl away backwards. Alex continued to do nothing.
A sudden distant roar caused everyone to shut up and freeze, even Malcolm. He raised his head away from Matthew to see an even bigger wyvern flying in like a fighter jet. Malcolm's body shimmered again, and he quickly turned back in to his pasty, brown haired self. He backed away towards his group of friends just in time for the new wyvern to land in the space he had previously been occupying. His massive frame formed a protective wall between Malcolm and Matthew. He had golden scales that almost looked like they were giving off a light of their own. His eyes were bright red and filled with a quiet rage. He let out a rumbling breath that carried air so hot, Malcolm and his friends had to move back.
Thomas Conrad had arrived.
Silence fell over the crowd, and Alex suddenly felt two hands gripping his shoulders. Before he could turn his head to see who it was, he heard Jack's voice in his right ear.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah," he breathed out, his voice shaky. "Are you?"
"Getting there. Come on."
Jack gripped Alex's upper arm and led him through the last few layers of the crowd, until the only ones who stood between them and Thomas was the line of Malcolm and his friends. Alex glanced over at Jack and noticed how much messier his hair was. Then he saw the tear in his sweater's collar and what looked like a hand shaped bruise forming on his neck.
"What-" Alex started to ask, but Jack squeezed his arm to stop him.
"I'll tell you later." he whispered as Thomas's body began to shimmer like Malcolm's. The golden wyvern was replaced by a golden haired, very pissed off, middle aged man in a brown three-piece suit. He looked at the row of very scared looking boys before glancing back at Matthew still on the ground. When he turned his head back his expression had shifted. It was less outwardly angry but somehow managed to be more terrifying.
"Due to the events of tonight," he started, his quiet and calm voice feeling extremely loud, "curfew has been pushed up. It will be in effect in fifteen minutes. Anyone not in their own dorms by then will earn themselves a disciplinary hearing." Thomas's eyes zeroed in on Alex and Jack, seeming to realize they were there for the first time. "And I do mean anyone . Understand?"
The crowd of students answered by scattering. A majority of them being scholarship students, most flooded back into McAvoy. Malcolm and his friends tried to run off down the path to the other dorms, but Thomas pointed a finger at Malcolm and he froze.
"Not. You. My office."
"Yes, headmaster," Malcolm muttered.
"Alexander," Thomas suddenly barked. Alex was worried he was going to interrogate him about why he was there. But instead, he just nodded at the other old family boys. "Were any of them involved in this incident as well? Physically speaking, not just jeers."
Alex glanced at the group, who were all glaring daggers. He didn't say anything, but his eyes rested on the two who had grabbed and dragged Matthew long enough for his uncle to not need him to.
"Harraway. Courtney. Join Mr. Greene in my office."
"Yes, headmaster," the two muttered. All of the old family boys went off after that. The three who had been sentenced to Thomas's office gave Matthew dirty looks, but he wasn't paying attention to them. He was just sitting on the ground, staring at his scraped-up palms and letting out steady but ragged breaths.
Thomas watched the other boys go, and once they were out of sight turned back to face Jack and Alex. He raised an eyebrow at Jack's torn sweater and bruise. "Some other altercation I should know about, Mr. Farrow?"
"No, sir," Jack said, so polite that Alex knew it had to be a lie. "Just got a little banged up in the crowd."
Thomas didn't look at all like he believed him, but he nodded. "Very well. See to it that Mr. Montoya gets home safely."
"Yes, sir," Alex said, hurrying past his uncle without looking at him. Jacked reached Matthew first. To Alex's surprise he walked right up to him without hesitation and held a hand out to help him up. Alex wasn't sure if Matthew even knew he was there. He was still staring at his hands. Alex could see now they were actually bleeding a fair amount.
"Come on, Montoya," Jack said, his voice gentle, "let's get you home."
At first it didn't seem like Matthew had heard him. But after a couple more seconds of silence Matthew brought himself to his feet on his own and started shuffling back to their dorm on shaky legs. He never once looked at them.
"We will discuss this incident further, Alexander," Thomas added as the two of them followed.
"Yes, sir," Alex mumbled as Jack took his arm again and pulled him away. Alex watched as his uncle shimmered in to a golden wyvern again and shot up in to the sky and towards his office. Once he was out of sight Alex slid out of Jack's hold and tugged on his sweater's collar. "What happened to you?"
"Nothing," Jack said, his eyes on Matthew's back.
"Jack, even my uncle could tell you were lying."
"It's not a big deal. I just ran in to that Spanish guy that gave you a hard time when we first showed up."
"You fought?"
"No, no." Jack sighed. "I started looking for you, when that crashing sound went off. Malcolm breaking their stereo, I guess. But I got caught at the back of the crowd. I only heard bits and pieces of Malcolm's stupid villain monologue. By the time I got through the mess had moved outside, but Eloise was still inside. Making sure her friend was alright. The blonde. Malcolm hit him?"
"Shoved him. Hard."
"That'll do it. Eloise was worried Malcolm had cracked his ribs or given him a concussion. He kept insisting that he was fine; he wanted me to go help Montoya. But then that Spanish kid showed up, grabbed me by the collar and started shouting in my face. In Spanish, at first, so I had no idea what he was saying. Then he switched to English, accused me of asking Malcolm and his buddies to show up. Crash the party and beat up Montoya. When I denied it, he grabbed me by the throat and shoved me against the wall. He looked ready to kill me, but Eloise talked him down. Then she kicked me out, and I didn't make it outside until your uncle showed up. I saw Malcolm had changed, though. And I finally found you."
"Why didn't you tell Thomas? About Emilio."
"It wasn't a big deal," Jack said, though he rubbed his head as if he could already feel a bump coming in. "Your uncle should stay focused on the fact that Malcolm was starting shit. He doesn't need to be investigating some jerk shoving me around."
"Jack, I... I did nothing, Jack," Alex admitted, a well of shame rising up to tighten his throat. "I just... I just stood there. Like a coward. Why did I-"
"Malcolm would have hurt you, Al."
"But he could have-"
"You're not a fighter. That's not something to be ashamed of."
"Jack-"
"And I'm glad you didn't get hurt, Alex. Keeping Malcolm in line is not your job. Neither is protecting every damsel in distress you find."
Alex wanted to argue further, but Jack's unspoken words stung at his eyes. I'm glad you're a coward that runs from fights; that makes it less likely you'll get your face bashed in.
The two walked the rest of the way in silence, Matthew at a distance in front of them but never out of sight. Alex tensed when he saw someone was waiting by the entrance of their dorm, thinking it might have been one of Malcolm's friends come to finish what he started. He relaxed slightly when he saw it was Warren. He was waiting by the entrance with an anxious expression, biting the nail on his thumb. Matthew didn't act like he noticed him, and Warren stepped to the side so Matthew wouldn't barrel through him. Warren didn't say anything to him, but he looked after him like he wanted to.
"Your party got busted up too, huh?" Jack said as they walked up the front steps. Warren rushed them like a frantic journalist.
"What happened?" he asked, sounding extremely panicked. "Did they hurt him? Did anyone-"
"Calm down, man. Take a breath."
"You knew Malcolm was coming?" Alex asked.
"He's the one who called in your uncle," Jack guessed. Warren didn't deny it.
"Malcolm was at Mary's, getting drunk and talking shit," Warren started. "Kept going off about the scholarship students. Saying he was going to... Well, we all knew it was just talk. I was hoping people would just ignore him. But Kaylee started calling him out. Taunting him, daring him to make good on his threats. Hannah and Andrew joined in. Malcolm just kept getting drunker and angrier. Finally, he left with a bunch of his friends. Hannah said he just ran off cuz he got embarrassed, but I saw his face before he went out. He looked like a man with something to prove."
"Nothing more dangerous than that," Jack muttered.
"I was convinced he was heading to McAvoy. I don't know if he knew they were having a party, or just went there cuz he knew that's where a bunch of scholarship students would be. I tried to follow him, but I ran in to your uncle here. He was doing a bed check with campus security. I told him what happened. He made me stay here, sent security to the chapel, and went off to McAvoy himself. Everyone else is still at the chapel, except for the boys who came back from McAvoy with their tails between their legs. About five minutes before you."
"You sure keep charming company, Warren," Jack said.
"I tried to get Andrew and the girls to stop. They never listen to me. They called me paranoid for going after them, kept insisting Malcolm wouldn't do anything." Warren's face darkened. "And Kaylee said, 'So what if he does? One less of them to worry about'."
"Christ."
"Why do you hang out with them, Warren?" Alex asked. It was always something he wondered. Warren never seemed like he fit in with Hannah and her group. He was too quiet, too reserved, and apparently too decent.
"Isaac is my cousin," Warren explained with a shrug. "On my mum's side. He's not so bad, when he's on his own. I wasn't very social when I first got here, and he sort of just pulled me along with him."
"And what was 'not so bad' Isaac doing while his friends were egging on a sociopath?" Jack asked.
Warren's mouth twisted into a humorless grin. "Well, he wasn't on his own tonight, was he?"
"He joined?"
"He abstained. From joining, and from discouraging."
"A lot of that going around tonight," Alex muttered.
"Did Malcolm hurt anyone?" Warren asked again. "That Montoya kid looked a little shaken."
"Malcolm was rough with him," Alex explained. "A couple of his friends dragged and shoved him. Then Malcolm changed. I have a feeling he intended to do worse, but then my uncle showed up and he changed back. Thank you, for telling him."
"We won't tell Malcolm," Jack added.
"What would he do to me anyways? Greene only knows how to punch down. I wonder, though, what his consequences will be."
"Thomas said anyone who starts shit will be expelled, right?"
"Making threats is one thing. Making good on them is a different beast entirely."
"Your family is really good at saying shit they don't mean," Jack conceded.
"I have a feeling you're right, Warren," Alex said. Before any of them could dwell on that sad reality too long, they heard a mass of shuffling behind them. They looked down the path to see the students who had been at the Somers' party making their way back, led by a security guard.
"Let's go," Jack said, pulling Alex by his wrist. "Don't feel like looking at them right now. You can stay at mine tonight, Al."
"Go on," Warren said, opening the door for them. "I want to hang back a bit."
Alex let Jack pull him into the building and elevator, but wordlessly denied his invitation to hide in his flat when he pushed the buttons for both his floor and Jack's.
"Alex-" Jack started to argue, but Alex cut him off.
"I think I've filled up my cowardice quota for the day, Jack." Alex said. "I already left him on his own back there. I don't want to again."
"Look, he didn't deserve what Malcolm did. What Malcolm was planning to do. But you don't owe him anything!"
"I think we all owe each other at least something, don't we? Respect. Decency. Empathy."
"Not like he's given any of that to you," Jack muttered, but his heart didn't seem in it. He let Alex get off at his floor, but kept his hand on the doors' panel to keep them from closing. "I'm keeping my door unlocked, okay?"
"Okay. Thank you, Jack. And I'm sorry. That tonight went so sideways."
"I was actually having fun for a second there." Jack smiled for a fraction of a second before it slipped in to a frown. "Nice while it lasted, I guess. Good night, Alex."
"Night."
Alex stood just outside the elevator while Jack moved his hand and let the doors close. Alex stared at the shiny metal door, his blurry reflection staring back at him. He looked even more like a dick than he had when he left at the beginning of the night.
You should hurry up, before the rest start coming up, AJ reminded him. Run to Jack if you're too scared to face him.
"Shut it," Alex muttered, and he could feel AJ laughing at how pathetic the retort was. He turned and shuffled toward his flat, where the door was slightly open. When he walked in, he heard the sound of running water coming from the bathroom. As he closed the front door, he heard the water stop and some rummaging noises begin.
"Do you need anything?" Alex called out, lingering by the doorway. No response. "There's a first aid kit under the sink."
The rummaging noises stopped, but that was the only indication that Matthew had heard him. Alex started to walk towards the bathroom, but stopped short when Matthew walked out, struggling to wrap one of his cut-up hands with his other cut up hand.
"I can help with that, if you-" Alex started to say, but cut himself off when Matthew looked up at him. There wasn't disdain. There wasn't annoyance. There was just rage mixed with fear.
"Oh, now you want to help, Conrad?" Matthew said in a deadpan voice. "What perfect fucking timing you have."
"I'm sorry, I-"
"Save it. I don't give a damn what meek little excuse you've practiced in your head." Matthew turned like he was going to storm off to his room, but he whipped back around so quickly that Alex jumped. "You know, your friends are a bunch of sadistic egomaniacs, but at least with them there's no guess work. No surprises. What you see is what you get, and in a way that's preferable to whatever bullshit you're peddling."
"They're not my-"
"Shut up. Because you? This little dance you got going on? It's infuriating! It's borderline psychotic! You walk around thinking to yourself that you're better than all those other old family bastards who still have their oversized claws in outdated notions of biological superiority. You think you're so fucking morally superior for thinking they're jackasses, for having the common sense to not believe in eugenics. Congratulations! Good on you for not being a blood purist! But when shit hits the fan and it's time to do something, you just stand there. I saw you, Conrad. You did nothing! Because as much as you like to think you're better than them, you don't want to do anything that would risk having to give up on the perks that come with being with one of them."
"That's not-"
"You just stood there! And watched!" Matthew screamed so loud his voice cracked. He looked like he was on the verge of tears. "Everyone else who froze I get. Cuz dozens of little runts like us don't stand a chance against one of you. But what was your excuse, huh? What would you have done if your uncle hadn't shown up? What would you have done if Malcolm had done more than make a threat? What would you have done if he had attacked me while he was like that? What would you have done if he had tried to kill me?"
As he spoke Matthew inched closer and closer. Alex could see his face had been scraped up too. His clothes were covered in dirt. He wasn't close to tears; he was already crying. But his tears were angry and hot. Hotter than any fire Alex could make. He didn't answer, since every time he had tried before Matthew cut him off. That pissed him off even more. "Well?"
Alex jumped back from the biting tone, hitting his head on the door behind him. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Matthew stared him down for what felt like a minute until he laughed dryly and backed away.
"Yeah, that's what I thought," he said, turning to go to his room. "Eloise was right about you, Conrad. You're not like rest of them. You're so much fucking worse. Go to hell."
Alex stared after Matthew in silence until he was gone in his room. He didn't slam the door, but the soft sound it made might as well have been a gunshot. Alex sat with the imaginary echo of it for a couple of seconds before trudging off to his own room.
Suddenly there was a voice in his head, different from his usual self-deprecating one. It was his father's, distant and quiet and calling from that bench by the pond.
You know you two might be poised to get along fine , he said. It was the second time that the memory of his father's optimism had reared its head. Before, Alex had thought it was silly because Matthew was so hell bent on being an ass. But there had been a moment, at the party. Where they had joked about best by dates and Matthew looked at him without malice or judgement or sarcasm. For a moment the baggage of their respective social statuses evaporated, and they were just two kids sharing a laugh over something stupid. Two kids taking the first step towards being friends.
But then reality snapped back in to place. Because of Alex. Because he couldn't be that bit more brave he needed to be to stand up to someone in front of a crowd. Brave enough to brush aside thoughts of his family and what they would think of him, what they would want from him. Brave enough to not be a Conrad.
They may have been poised to get along fine, but Alex was the one who made sure that any chance of allyship got shot and hurled off a cliff. The rift between them was now bigger than ever because of his colossal fuck up.
But really , AJ piped back in as he entered his room, shed his ridiculous clothes, and crawled in to bed, should you have expected anything different from yourself?
"Go to hell," he told himself.
Living with you, I'm already there, mate.